Categorization and conceptualization

How do we develop objects and entities categories? How do we organize our knowledge? My work moves from the idea that categories do not reflect invariant structures in the environment but are flexible, dynamical, and reflect our current goals and our current interactions with the environment.

Starting from this viewpoint, I'm interested in knowing which is the role of action, function, and motion for our categories.

I'm also interested in the way we think of different kinds of objects and entities: for example artefacts and natural objects, animate and inanimate entities.

Finally, I'm interested in the way we link our categories. For example, which kinds of conceptual relations do we preferentially use: hierarchical, taxonomic relations (e.g., dog-animal) or thematic relations (e.g., dog-bone)?

I am also interested in abstract concepts, like "freedom" or "fantasy", but since I am working extensively on them, if you are interested click here: abstract concepts

Papers on categorization (since 2001)

• Cimatti, F., Flumini, A., Vittuari, M., Borghi, A.M. (2016). Odors, words and objects. RIFL- Rivista Italiana di Filosofia del linguaggio.pdf to download
• Borghi, A.M. (2016). Commentary: “Weighty data: importance information influences estimated weight of digital information storage devices”. Front. Psychol. 7:709. doi: 10.3389/fpsyg.2016.00709 .link to the commentary
• Borghi, A.M. (2015). An Embodied and Grounded perspective on concepts. In Bianca, M., Piccari, P. (eds.). Epistemology of ordinary knowledge. (pp. 181-194). Cambridge Scholar. ISBN (10): 1-4438-8052-3; ISBN (13): 978-1-4438-8052-7. pre-print
• Flumini, A., Barca, L., Borghi, A.M., Pezzulo (2015). How do you hold your mouse? Tracking the compatibility effect between hand posture and stimulus size. Psychological Research, 79, 928–938. DOI 10.1007/s00426-014-0622-0. pdf to download
• Scorolli, C., & Borghi, A.M. (2015). Square bananas, blue horses: The relative weight of shape and color in concept recognition and representation. Frontiers in Psychology, Front. Psychol.6:1542. doi:10.3389/fpsyg.2015.01542 .pdf to download
• Marino, B., Borghi, A.M., Gemmi, L., Cacciari, C., Riggio, L. (2015). Neural Adaptation Effects in Conceptual Processing. Behavioral Sciences, 5 (3), 353-371. doi:10.3390/bs50x000x. pdf to dowload
• Scorolli, C., Borghi, A.M., Tummolini, L. (2015). Indici visivi e giudizi impliciti di proprietà: Uno studio sperimentale.Visual cues and implicit judgments of ownership: An experimental study.) Sistemi intelligenti, 1, 209-220, DOI: 10.1422/79695. pre-print
• Morlino, G., Gianelli, C., Borghi, A.M., Nolfi, S. (2015). Learning to manipulate and categorize in human and artificial agents. Cognitive Science, 39 (1), 39-64. DOI: 10.1111/cogs.12130. pdf to download
• Flumini, A., Ranzini, M., Borghi, A.M. (2014). Nomina sunt consequentia rerum. Sound-shape correspondences with every-day object figures. Journal of Memory and Language, 76, 47-60. http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.jml.2014.06.004. pdf to downLoad
• Flumini, A., Barca, L., Borghi, A.M., Pezzulo, G. (2014). Tracking the compatibility effect of hand grip and stimulus size. In M. Cruciani & A. Rega (Eds. (pp. 162-170)). Corpi, strumenti e cognizione. Anno 1 - Volume n° 5 - Atti del convegno internazionale dell'Associazione Italiana di Scienze Cognitive (pp.162-170). pre-print
• Scorolli, C., Miatton, M., Wheaton, L., Borghi, A.M. (2014). I give you a cup, I get a cup: A kinematics study on social intention. Neuropsychologia, 57, 196-204. doi: 10.1016/j.neuropsychologia.2014.03.006.. pdf to download
• Flumini, A., Ranzini, M., Borghi, A.M. (2014). Sound-symbolic correspondences with figures of known entities. Proceedings of the Cognitive Science Society, 2210-2215. pre-print
• Kalenine, S.,Shapiro, A., Flumini, A., Borghi, A.M., Buxbaum, L. (2014). Visual context modulates potentiation of grasp types during semantic object categorization. Psychonomic Bulletin & Review, 21(3):645-51. doi: 10.3758/s13423-013-0536-7.. pre-print
• Anelli, F., Nicoletti, R., Bolzani, R., Borghi, A.M. (2013). Keep away from danger: Dangerous objects in dynamic and static situations.Frontiers in Human Neuroscience, 7, 344.. doi: 10.3389/fnhum.2013.00344. pdf
• Anelli, F., Ranzini, M., Nicoletti, R., Borghi, A.M. (2013). Perceiving object dangerousness: An escape from pain? Experimental Brain Research, 228, 457–466, DOI 10.1007/s00221-013-3577-2. pre-print
• Tummolini, L. Scorolli, C., Borghi, A.M. (2013). Disentangling the sense of ownership from the sense of fairness. Commentary on Baumard, André and Sperber, Behavioral and Brain Sciences, 36, pp 101-102. doi:10.1017/S0140525X1200088X. . pre-print
• Anelli, F., Borghi, A.M., Nicoletti, R.(2012).Grasping the pain: Motor resonance with dangerous affordances. Consciousness & Cognition, 21, 1627-1639. pre-print
• Borghi, A.M., Flumini, A., Natraj, N., Wheaton, L.A. (2012). One hand, two objects: Emergence of affordance in contexts. Brain and Cognition, 80(1), 64-73. preprint Materials
• Liuzza, M.T., Setti, A., Borghi, A.M. (2012). Kids observing other kids’ hands: visuomotor priming in children. Consciousness & Cognition, 21, 383-392. pre-print.
• Morlino, G., Gianelli, C., Borghi, A.M., Nolfi, S. (2010). Developing the ability to manipulate objects: A comparative study with humans and artificial agents. In B. Johansson, E. Sahin, C. Balkenius (Eds). Proceedings of the Tenth International Conference on Epigenetic Robotics, Lund University Cognitive Studies, pp. 169-170. pre-print
• Anelli, F., Nicoletti, R., Borghi, A.M. (2010). Categorization and action. What about object consistence? Acta Psychologica, 133, 203-211. pre-print Materials (pdf)
• Setti, A., Caramelli, N., Borghi, A.M. (2009). Conceptual information about size of objects in nouns. European Journal of Cognitive Psychology, 21, 7, 1022-1044. pre-print
• Kalénine, S., Bonthoux, F., Borghi, A.M. (2009). How action and context priming influence categorization: a developmental study. British Journal of Developmental Psychology, 27, 717-730. pre-print
• Iachini, T., Borghi, A.M., Senese, P. (2008). Categorization and sensorimotor interaction with objects. Brain and Cognition, 67, 31-43. pre-print
• Borghi, A.M., Bonfiglioli, C., Ricciardelli, P., Rubichi, S. Nicoletti, R. (2007). Do we access object manipulability while we categorize? Evidence from reaction times studies. In A.C. Schalley and Khlentzos,D. (Eds.). Mental states: Evolution, function, nature. (pp.153-170). Amsterdam/Philandelphia: John Benjamins. preprint
• Bazzarin, V., Borghi, A.M., Tessari, A., Nicoletti, R. (2007). Is a small apple more like an apple or more like a cherry? In: S. Vosniadou & D.Kayser (eds.). Proceedings of the  Meeting of the European Society of Cognitive Science, Delphi 2007. London: Erlbaum.(pdf).
• Sacchetti, S., Borghi, A.M. (2007). Concetti di oggetti e funzione: Ruolo della funzione canonica e effetti di contesto. Giornale Italiano di Psicologia, 34, 781-788. (Object concepts and function: Role of canonical function and contextual effects. Italian Journal of Psychology). preprint
• Borghi, A.M., Bonfiglioli, C., Lugli, L., Ricciardelli, P., Rubichi, S., Nicoletti, R. (2007). Are visual stimuli sufficient to evoke motor information? Studies with hand primes. Neuroscience Letters, 411, 17-21 . preprint
• Borghi, A.M. (2007).Object concepts and embodiment: Why sensorimotor and cognitive processes cannot be separated. La nuova critica, 49-50, 90-107 . (pdf)
• Borghi, A. (2006). Vita Artificiale e comportamento: Simulazioni su categorizzazione e azione. Sistemi Intelligenti, 18, 125-132 (Artificial Life and behavior: Simulations on categorization and action, Intelligent Systems).
• Caramelli, N., Borghi, A.M.., Setti, A. (2006). The identification of definition strategies in children of different ages. Linguistica Computazionale, 26, 155-177.
• Caramelli, N., Borghi, A.M., Setti, A. (2006). The relational structure of conceptual knowledge in children of different ages. Linguistica Computazionale, 26, 179-196.
• Borghi, A.M., Bonfiglioli, C., Lugli, L., Ricciarelli, P., Rubichi, S. Nicoletti, R. (2005). Visual hand primes and manipulable objects. In: B.Bara, L. Barsalou, B. Bucciarelli (eds.) COGSCI2005. XXVII Annual Conference of the Cognitive Science Society. Mahwah, N. J.:Lawrence Erlbaum Associates, Inc., 2005. p. 322-327.
• Borghi, A.M., Caramelli, N., & Setti, A. (2005). Conceptual Information on Objects' Locations. Brain and Language, 93, 140-151.
• Borghi, A.M., Parisi, D., e Di Ferdinando, A. (2005) Action and hierarchical levels of categories: A connectionist perspective. Cognitive Systems Research, 6, 99-110.
• Borghi, A.M. (2005). Object concepts and action. In D. Pecher & R.A. Zwaan (Eds). Grounding Cognition: The role of perception and action in memory, language, and thinking (pp. 8-34). Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
• Borghi, A.M. (2004). Objects concepts and action: Extracting affordances from objects’ parts. Acta Psychologica, 115, 1, 69-96.
• Caramelli, N. & Borghi, A.M. (2004). The role of head nouns in conceptual combination. In J. Drevillon, J.Vivier, A. Salinas (Eds.), Psycholinguistics. A multidisciplinary science – Proceedings of the VIth ISAPL international congress (Caen, June 28-July 1^st 2000) (pp. 87-92). Paris: Europia.
• Borghi, A.M., Di Ferdinando, A. e Parisi, D. (2003). Violation of category boundaries: A connectionist study with action-based categories. In F. Schmalhofer, R.M. Young & F. Katz, Proceedings of the  Meeting of the European Society of Cognitive Science, Osnabrück 2003 (pp.61-66). London: Erlbaum.
• Borghi, A.M. & Caramelli, N. (2003). Situation Bounded Conceptual Organization in Children: From Action to Spatial Relations. Cognitive Development, 18, 40-60.
• Borghi, A.M (2002). Violazioni logiche nei processi di categorizzazione e nelle generalizzazioni induttive basate su categorie. In G. Mucciarelli & G. Celani (Eds.). Quando il pensiero sbaglia. La fallacia tra psicologia e scienza. Torino: UTET, pp. 120-156.
• Borghi, A.M. (2002). Concetti e azione. In Borghi, A.M. & Iachini, T. (eds.). Scienze della mente. Bologna: Il Mulino, pp. 203-222.
• Borghi A.M., Di Ferdinando A., Parisi D. (2002). The role of perception and action in object categorization. In J.A. Bullinaria & W. Lowe (Eds), Connectionist Models of Cognition and Perception. Singapore: World Scientific, pp. 40-50.
• Caramelli, N., Borghi, A.M. (2002). Sviluppi contemporanei. Immagini mentali. Concetti e categorizzazione. In Schönpflug W. e Schönpflug U. (a cura di), Istituzioni di psicologia generale, III italian edition edited by M. Olivetti Belardinelli e C. Fiorilli. Padova: Cedam, pp. 237-252.
• Di Ferdinando, A., Borghi, A.M., Parisi, D. (2002). The role of action in object categorization. In S. Haller & G. Simmons (Eds.), Proceedings of the 15th International Flairs Conference, pp. 138-142, AAAI Press, Pensacola (FL).
• Borghi, A.M. & Caramelli, N. (2001), Taxonomic relations and cognitive economy in conceptual organization, in Moore, J.D., & Stenning, K. (eds.), Proceedings of 23rd Meeting of the Cognitive Science Society, London: Erlbaum, 98-103.